NEW YORK (Reuters) - Merrill Lynch & Co Inc <MER.N> said it
hired Thomas Montag, former co-head of global securities
trading at Goldman Sachs Group Inc <GS.N>, as Chief Executive
John Thain looks to new talent to turn around the largest
brokerage in the world.

Merrill Lynch has been courting Montag for months. Montag,
51, retired from Goldman Sachs in December after working at the
firm for 22 years.

Merrill Lynch posted a $2 billion first-quarter loss
earlier this month amid losses in subprime mortgages,
collateralized debt obligations, and other risky instruments.
It has recorded more than $30 billion of write-downs since the
third quarter.

Thain has brought aboard other senior executives since
taking the reins at Merrill late last year, including Nelson
Chai, NYSE Euronext's <NYX.N> chief financial officer, who was
hired in December. In January, Merrill Lynch named Noel Donohoe
co-chief risk officer. Donohoe was a former chief risk officer
at Goldman Sachs.

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Thain himself was a 24-year veteran of Goldman Sachs, and
headed NYSE Euronext before moving to Merrill Lynch.